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Published on Monday, January 29, 2018

Dueling Lyft and Uber bills make first public appearance in 2018

Separate bills that would set up a regulatory system for Transportation Network Companies (such as Uber and Lyft) have made their debut in the 2018 Legislature.

SB 6043/HB 2716, Sen. Steve Hobbs (D-Lake Stevens)/Rep. Gael Tarleton (D-Seattle), are companion bills that are backed by the transportation network industry. These bills seek to limit the regulating authority of local governments.

Specifically, SB 6043/HB 2716 establish a statewide regulatory authority of all Transportation Network Companies (TNCs). The Department of Licensing (DOL) would be the regulatory agency and city ability to regulate drivers would be significantly curtailed. DOL would be responsible for permitting individual drivers, conducting background checks, maintaining records of drivers, and regulating their conduct. TNCs would be responsible for vehicle inspections and assessing a $0.10 surcharge on all TNC trips that would go to the DOL to cover the costs of administering the program. Any leftover money would be distributed to local governments proportionally based on the number of rides within each jurisdiction to cover the costs of local enforcement.

The bill specifically preempts local governments from regulating TNCs through licensing and permits for a TNC and TNC drivers including:

The preemption does not affect local authority to impose safe and reliable requirements on for-hire vehicle services as long as they are consistent with the bill. This preemption also does not affect local authority with respect to regulating and enforcing traffic flow, traffic patterns, and roadways, to ensure public safety and convenience.

SB 6500/HB 2945, Sen. Rebecca Saldaña (D-Seattle)/Rep. Jake Fey (D-Tacoma), are companion bills backed by the City of Seattle, King County, and others.

SB 6500/HB 2945 retains much of local government’s authority to regulate TNCs and their drivers.